By popular request ... On Friday night, we had friends over to visit while the kids were trick-or-treating. I thought I’d augment the candy “take” with some appetizers. No one’s going to eat a real meal with all that candy going on.



So, I prepared my favorite Friday night meal: Appetizers. This easy, easy appetizer from my friend, Marilyn, was the hands-down favorite. (Forgot to take a picture of it though. I am trying to be better about adding “visual interest” to my blog; I recently read a comment from someone who doesn’t even try a recipe if there isn’t a picture: “If it wasn’t good enough to photograph, it probably wasn’t good enough to eat.” Mind you, I don’t necessarily subscribe to that theory, if there’s not a photo with one of my blogs, I probably had some number of my four kids vying for my attention while I was trying to get whatever I cooked on the table, or whatever I wrote posted to this blog. Or they ate it before I could find the camera. Anyway, from here on out, I’ll be making the effort to include pictures, hopefully of the food.)

And so, back to the food, these Bacon-wrapped breadsticks are so easy, and so different, and so good. They’re always a hit! And you can easily keep these four simple ingredients on hand. My sister, Regina, often substitutes prosciutto where bacon is called for. She read it’s lower in sodium and my parents and her husband both need to watch their sodium intake (I think it’s lower in sodium mostly for the fact that you use a thinner piece, but the substitution would probably work here). It’d also be interesting to play with other spices and sweeteners (a pinch of cayenne pepper with brown sugar will make is more fiery, maple syrup and crushed pecans for crunch, brown sugar and dried mustard for bite). I haven’t yet, because I don’t make them often enough that I’m looking for a change just yet, and my family definitely subscribes to the “If it’s not broke, don’t mess with it” theory. If you do try other combinations, please let me know.

Bacon-wrapped breadsticks

1 package long, thing breadsticks (I use Pastene, Marilyn uses another brand that escapes me now, Stella D’Oro are too thick)
1 pound bacon
¼ c brown sugar
¼ c chili powder

Preheat oven to 350°. Combine brown sugar and chili on a plate. Place foil on a rimmed cookie sheet.

Wrap each breadstick in bacon, spiraling it about halfway down the stick. Roll bacon in brown sugar-chili mixture. Place on baking sheet. Bake for about 20 minutes, until bacon is cooked and starting to crisp.

Remove from oven and let stand about 5 minutes, until bacon firms up. These are great served in a tall mug or glass for visual interest on the table, just make sure the bacon is no longer flacid or they droop, and that’s not a pretty sight.